The UIAA Safety Committee (SAFECOM) collaborates with the German Alpine Club (DAV) to support the translation and publication of the new Bolting Guide.
Title ‘Bolts: A guide to installing and replacing bolts on climbing routes‘Originally published by DAV in German. At the recent UIAA SAFECOM conference in Shayton, France, the conference marked 50 years of the history of the committee – the English version of the guide has been officially published.
The document forms part of UIAA’s commitment to provide substantial information related to the long-term development of the federal rock anchor standard and has conducted particular research in the areas of corrosion and pressure rupture failure. Please refer to the dedicated website Page For more information.
About the Guide
Bolts have been used in climbing and mountaineering for more than 50 years. In the past, especially, bolts were often a point of debate in enthusiastic discussions about climbing ethics, as bolts made it impossible to protect the routes that could be climbed without scarring in the rock. This accessibility accelerates the rapid development of modern sports climbing through bolts, with the highest level of the route reaching the highest level. As a result, rock climbing has changed from exoticism for several people to popular sport due to the safety provided by the bolts.
Time and time again, the failure and damage were reported to the German Alpine Club (DAV). These bolts have been collected and evaluated by DAV Safety Research. The resulting knowledge has been incorporated into the 1995 publication “Safeterly Mountaineering Safety” and in 2009 the first “Bolt Brochure” (Bohrhakenbroschüre) was published as a Bolt installation guide. Since then, a lot has happened: the adhesive that tested glue bolts at that time is no longer available; the standards for bolts have been revised repeatedly; some bolt systems have been accepted; others have no longer used; bolt failures have been analyzed; suspicious bolt systems have been reviewed. With this new version of the Bolt Manual, UIAA and DAV Safety Research Department summarize the current status of bolts.
Through this brochure and other measures, UIAA and DAV work hard to provide information and guidance to increase awareness and increase safety.
Chapters in the guide
Topics covered by the guide include:
- Bolt type/bolt history overview
- Glue bolts
- Mechanical bolts
- Bolt corrosion
- Types of rocks
- Advantages and disadvantages of bolt systems
- Place bolts
- Protection
- Climbing ethical aspects
Download the document here.
